Cda Basin Cleanup Unveiled Plan Hinges On The Outcome Of Suit Against Mining Industry

Idaho’s plan to clean up mining pollution in the Coeur d’Alene River Basin hinges on the settlement of a massive tribal and federal lawsuit against Silver Valley mining companies.

Steven Allred, the head of the Idaho Division of Environmental Quality, unveiled what he called a 20-year cleanup strategy on Friday.

The four-pronged proposal calls for development of a new work plan for cleanup; a trust fund mostly paid for by the lawsuit settlement; a push for economic development in the Silver Valley; and creation of a new local governing body to enact the plan.

Allred wants it all up and running by the end of next year, he told the members of the Coeur d’Alene Basin Commission, created by former Gov. Phil Batt to represent the state’s interests in cleanup.

Idaho’s political leaders have long made no secret of their opposition to the courts or the feds controlling cleanup.

“The governor is committed to try to bring some sanity to this process,” the DEQ chief said.

If successful, Idaho will head off the 8-year-old lawsuit against the mines by the Coeur d’Alene Tribe and U.S. Environmental Protection agency, expected to go to trial in November 2000.

Coeur d’Alene tribal officials say it’s possible their high-profile lawsuit will never see a trial.

“The odds of a settlement just went up tremendously,” said Chuck Matheson, tribal vice-chairman. ”I still can’t say for sure it’s happening, but before Mr. Allred came along there was no chance.”

Washington state wants a stake in a future settlement, too.

Washington is holding off on a lawsuit against the mines over lead and other contamination washing out of Lake Coeur d’Alene and onto Spokane River beaches, Assistant Attorney General Owen Clarke said.

But to head off future legal wrangling, Idaho needs to give Washington a role in any settlement, Clarke said.

“In order for there to be a complete settlement of all the natural resource damage issues in the basin, Washington must be included in it.”

Before a settlement occurs, Allred said, the state needs to mold a vision for cleanup that involves everyone from local and tribal governments to federal officials.

The Idaho Legislature will probably need to authorize a new cleanup oversight group either this session or next, he said.

The group could guide data-collection and cleanup efforts, Allred said. If successful, he added, he intends to “wreak havoc” with ongoing EPA efforts to map a sweeping cleanup strategy for the heavily mined basin.

Officials from the EPA said they could not comment on the proposal because they haven’t seen it. “We’re anxiously waiting for it,” said agency spokesman Mark MacIntyre.

Silver Valley mines applauded the drive to get cleanup out of the courts.

“The mining companies are willing to work with the state on any process that can focus effectively on cleanup and not on litigation,” said Holly Houston, executive director of the Mining Information Office in Coeur d’Alene. “We’re keeping an open mind.”

The industry favors a “workable plan” for cleanup that allows companies to predict their financial responsibility, Houston said.

She declined to comment on what the mines would be willing to pay.

The tribe originally sought nearly $1 billion; the feds wanted roughly $600 million.

But some onlookers at Friday’s meeting expressed caution.

The hoopla over unity makes a tricky cleanup sound easier than it is, a tribal staff member said. “I think we have to be careful we don’t get lulled into a belief this is a simple task ahead of us,” said Ed Javorka, a tribal scientist.

Pollution downstream of Cataldo, where decades of metals-laden sediment from the South Fork of the Coeur d’Alene River settled out, poses scientific questions on the cutting edge of cleanup, Javorka said. Lead levels in wetlands around the chain lakes top out at 50,000 parts per million, he said, but cleaning up wetlands is expensive and complex.

The federal safe standard for recreational areas is 2,000 parts per million.

A map developed from DEQ data shows different treatments for contamination, either physical removal or reducing people’s exposure to metals through warning signs, water treatment and other methods.

Phillip Cernera, an environmental staff member with the tribe, said he was wary of depending too much on so-called “institutional controls.”

“Economically, that continues to keep people at risk,” Cernera said. “I wouldn’t want to buy property in a place that’s full of institutional controls.”

Allred emphasized that the proposal is open for debate, but also said that time is of the essence. “A lot of people think I’m crazier than a bat,” he said, of the proposal he called very aggressive. “Maybe I am. But I’m pretty damn persistent.”